"Mr. Klein has done worlds of good for my family," RaeJean McCain said.

From a tall chair in a large room, Deputy Hall County Attorney Martin Klein faces struggling families like RaeJean McCain's every week.

"They're not just gonna let people get swept under the rug. They actually continue to enforce it until they get what they need to do," McCain said.

They continued pushing her daughter Melanie until she was back on track to graduate.

"She went from actually being a ninth grade dropout to she'll graduate next year," McCain said.

The truancy program is a step to avoid truancy charges against students or parents. Trying to keep kids in the classroom and out of the courtroom.

"One of the sad things about being a grey-haired prosecutor is you know I'll see people in the system now and it's 25-year-olds that I remember as a cute little kid who was just getting in a little bit of trouble," Hall County Attorney Mark Young said.

You might say the numbers speak for themselves. In the last two years, 1,684 initial letters were sent to families struggling with truancy. 194 went on to the hearing process, and from there, only 13 cases have been referred to county court.

"There are many that don't believe that just pressing charges against a student is gonna change a student's attendance," Terry Macholan, with Lincoln Public Schools, said.

The LPS district is just beginning a similar battle against truancy. County and school officials have modeled their program after one in Kentucky.

"We're not only looking at the consequences of the attendance, we're looking at the causes for the truancies," Macholan said.

The Grand Island Truancy Program is a unique model, created from research all across the country. Officials said the district's hearing process is what makes the program stand out.

"The model that we use includes the partnership specifically with the county attorney's office. The county attorney is sitting here in this boardroom. It's not just another school official," Deputy Hall County Attorney Martin Klein said.

It's an official that won't take no for an answer.

"Every time that he spoke with her, he'd say I believe in you. I believe you can do this. You have to do this and her attitude changed immediately," McCain said.